The object of a heat exchanger assembly is to maximize heat transfer efficiency at the lowest possible manufacturing cost. The object of the present invention is to prevent leaks caused by stress and cracks created as a result of assembling the components of the heat exchanger assembly. Such heat exchangers include adjacent hollow tubes interconnected by heat exchanger fins. The tubes have top ends and bottom ends that attach to header plates. A cover attaches to each of the header plates attached to the ends of the tubes to form a tank for holding liquid to be cooled in the heat exchanger assembly. The prior art heat exchanger has not provided for bonding a plastic header to the tubes to prevent leaks with ease and economical fabrication.
Typically, the header plates and tubes are made of some form of metal such as brass. They are bonded together by a brazing process in an oven. This method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,741,394. In the prior art, methods for bonding a plastic header plate to another plastic component of the heat exchanger are disclosed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,182,856 discloses a heat exchanger having disk oil coolers surrounded by a plastic covering that is welded to a plastic lid. Another example includes U.S. Pat. No. 4,066,122 in which the entire radiator consists of plastic material and the plastic components of the radiator are welded together after being fastened together with straps. Further, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,565,223 and 5,107,924 disclose methods of joining the plastic header plate with a plastic water tank.